Tag Archives: Saffron

Scones, Top

Saffron

3 Comments
A flower wall at Saffron
A flower wall at Saffron

We are still in Poole though technically we’re in Westbourne which, to us, just seems like part of Poole. The good people of Westbourne, however, would probably disagree.It has a slightly independent air about it. With both halves being in relative agreement our new fangled granddaughter GPS system worked well on this occasion. It took us directly to Westbourne Arcade. Pat had been here shopping the day before in Rose the Store and wanted to return to thank them for being so kind and helpful. Saffron was virtually next door.

Arcade where Saffron is
Wimborne Arcade built in 1884. Lots of shops and even a small 19 seat cinema
Numerals
Lola's Roman numerals
Roman numerals 1-1000

It’s run by a couple of high fliers. One worked as cabin crew with British Airways for many years and the other with Virgin Atlantic. With their big welcoming smiles their experience in hospitality was obvious right from the start. While our granddaughters rearranged the sugar pouches so that they were all the right way up one of them was talking about Roman numerals. Along with all the other nonsense that comes out of their mouths we thought nothing of it. Later however their parents showed us this picture which had been done at school, not as part of any kind of project but just because she “felt like it”. The original must have been about ten feet long. In vain, I desperately looked for a mistake. There had to be at least one, but no, every one correct. Sometimes kids can take you totally by surprise.

A scone and a baby chino at Saffron
Our scone complete with cream and jam plus a chocolate babychinno with marshmallows for the girls
Fresh

We also got almond croissants for the girls (don’t tell the parents) and were informed that Americans don’t know how to say ‘croissant’ properly. Apparently they say ‘croiSANT’. Our American readers should feel free to confirm or deny this dastardly rumour being put about by young British girls. We could easily tell that our scone had been baked just a few hours earlier, it was so fresh! An easy topscone. Internal view of Saffron

BH4 9AY     . tel: 01202 759587         Saffron FB

///into.tinsel.decks

We came to the end of our week in Poole wondering if we had done enough to entertain our granddaughters while their parents worked.  Maybe the trip to Tesco followed by another to Homebase hadn’t been enough? Farewell poemAfter a wee poetry session at bedtime the night before we were presented with this little note the following morning. It was the best week for us too. Now we just have the long drive back to Scotland.

Of course, with a Microsoft global IT outage you might never receive this post … you should be so lucky!

Scones, Top

Harvey Nichols Forth Floor

5 Comments
Absolutely fabulous, darling!

It’s not everyday we are in Harvey Nicks. It is more the domain of those who seek a decadent champagne lifestyle, a description that could never be leveled at us?? We do, however, feel a certain obligation  on behalf of our readers, to explore every avenue and if you are looking for a ‘fabulous’ scone this would seem like an obvious avenue to try. And the rain had just come on so we had to find shelter … that’s our story and we’re sticking to it!  Expectations were pretty high. They have had 185 years since the business started on a corner in Knightsbridge, London, to get their scones right.

The Brasserie looking out towards the castle
The Brasserie looking out towards the castle

It’s not easy though. To get to a scone you have to go all the way to the top floor through masses of ridiculously priced goods. Easy for me but a nightmare for Pat. Having said that, there was a ‘50% SALE’ throughout the store which thankfully had the effect of reducing prices to merely ‘extortionate’. Eventually you reach the Forth Floor Restaurant … on the 4th floor with views over the river Forth. You can see what they have done there. Dashed clever those posh folk!

Part of the Terrace with the river Forth and the Kingdom of Fife in the far distance
Part of the Terrace with the river Forth and the Kingdom of Fife in the far distance

There are several eateries on this level including a YO! Sushi where you can eat raw fish off one one of those carousel conveyor belt thingys.  What is really interesting though, is another carousel called the Chocolate Lounge which does exactly the same .. but with cakes … aaarrgghh! How dangerous is that? Just as well there were no seats available.

Melville monument and St Andrews Square with the castle in the background
Melville monument and St Andrews Square with the castle in the background

We headed for the Brasserie where, even although it was raining, we were able to sit on the Terrace. It has great panoramic views over the city. No ‘50% Sale’ on scones. Turns out though that it is one of these places where the scones come in twos. So it’s a kind of 50% deal. HN 04We were informed they came as a brace because they were ‘quite small’ but when they arrived with their accompanying little pots of jam and clotted cream they were actually quite big. At £4 we thought this was pretty good value … especially here! At Harvey Nicks they don’t bother with parts of £s, everything is either £3, £4, £5 and so on … keeps things simple. When it comes to paying the bill, however, they add on an automatic service charge … boo!

Soft and fluffy

Anyway, the scones were actually rather fabulous. Soft fluffy and sweet on the inside and slightly crunchy on the outside, just how we like them. Service was friendly and the excellent coffee came with a round of crisp shortbread. There really wasn’t anything not to like … topscone, darling! HN 09

The EU and Australia

With only a day left until the EU referendum, things are reaching fever pitch. Will we be in or out? We think the Ab Fab pair Edina and Patsy would be ‘outers’ while the sensible daughter, Saffron, would be ‘in’. Whatever happens we will end up like Australia. ‘In’ as in Eurovision or ‘out’, as in reality, and the result will be ‘absolutely fabulous’ for roughly half the population!

EH2 2AD    tel: 0131 524 8350      Harvey Nichols dining